Monday, 21 January 2013

Product Smackdown

Hello beauties!

I hope you had a fabulous weekend. We had a great time, snuggling and watching movies while it was POURING outside. I love rainy weather!

I'm going to do something today that I haven't done before; a product smackdown. Basically, for those of you who've never heard of something like this, it's a comparison between various products of the same nature. Today, I'm going to compare 5 body lotions for you guys. Or at least, I'll give my honest opinion. And one of the options I have isn't cruelty free either, though I didn't purchase it in the traditional sense. :) It came in my Energizer Night Race gift pack, which all participants received from their entry fee.

And this puts me in murky water.

A lot of you won't agree with me here, because I may seem like a hypocrite. But I have some animal tested products in my house, in spite of my MASSIVE conviction against acts of cruelty towards animals. The thing is, some of these products were bought before I went cruelty free and they were expensive. I plan on emptying these products and replacing them with cruelty free alternatives. I also have a gift here and there that I received from family members whom I care about, which are not cruelty free. Since these are gifts, I'll use them as well, because I don't want to hurt the people I love and their feelings.

I do not buy products that were tested on animals and I do not plan to start again. In every case (except toothpaste, which I can't find a cruelty free alternative to in South Africa, coz nobody makes them), I've searched for products to replace the ones I used to use and love with products nothing had to be tortured or die for, which I use and love now. So please don't judge me on the inclusion of the Vaseline product! :)

Here are the products I'll review today :

Just a quick reminder here that none of these were sent to me to be reviewed, I bought them all (except the Vaseline) and I've personally used each of them for more than a month to be able to do this post. So, without further ado and in no particular order, let's get to the products.

Good Stuff is a South African brand available at Pick n Pay. I discovered this brand last year and I've loved it since. They do lotions, bubble bath, body wash and hand cleansers.

Product size : 360 ml
Price : Around R30.00
Packaging : Brilliant! Feminine purple and can be turned on its head when it's nearing the empty stage. Includes cute poems or facts on the face of the packaging.
Scent : Fantastic. This one smells of Evening primrose and the scent remains on the skin for long after the product was applied.
Moisturising : This product is incredibly moisturising and leaves the skin feeling silky smooth, but not at all greasy.
Cruelty free : Yes, and it is vegan as well.

Overall, I love this one and it may well be my personal favourite of them all (well, maybe... There is another of these products I love to death!). The packaging and scent sets this product over the top!

This is a Woolworths Energy body lotion. Everybody knows Woollies and the quality of products you can buy there, so I don't need to introduce them!

Product size : 500 ml
Price : R45.00 (Great value for what you're paying)
Packaging : Great. Transparent so you can see how much product is left inside and stands on its head so the lotion will always be near the opening, for easy access.
Scent : Great! The subtle ginger smell is refreshing and the scent remains on the skin for a long time as well.
Moisturising : This product is incredibly moisturising (probably the best in this department) and leaves the skin feeling smooth and hydrated, but not greasy.
Cruelty free : Yes, and it is vegan as well.

Another great product. As far as value for money and moisturising go, this is the best of the five products.

Oh So Heavenly is another South African product and is available at Clicks. If it weren't for this brand, going cruelty free would be much more difficult. They do hand and body wash, lotions, sanitizers, foot baths and other foot products, bubble baths and oils, deodorants (really good ones!) and body spritzers. I love this brand!

Product size : 375 ml
Price : Around R30.00
Packaging : Good. Soft, dirty pink with a slight shimmer to it. This one can't be flipped to it's lid, because it's slanted.
Scent : Fantastic! (As with all Heavenly's products.) The sweet smell of pomegranate and rosehip is really intoxicating, and this is another one that lingers on the skin. In fact, you can go to sleep with this one and still smell sweet the next morning.
Moisturising : This product is very moisturising and is yet another product that has the hydrating power, but does not leave the skin feeling greasy. (it compares well to the Woollies one as far as moisturising power goes.)
Cruelty free : Yes, and it is vegan as well.

This is the one I use the most, since it's on my desk near my keyboard. Whenever my skin needs a lift during the day, I reach for this baby. This is the other product that can count as my favourite! It's the absolute best as far as scent goes and is great when it comes to hydrating the skin, though the packaging is the downside here. Mine is nearing it's demise and it's a struggle to get the lotion out of hiding. :)

Right. Everybody knows Vaseline, so here I don't have to introduce either.

Product size : 350 ml
Price : I have no idea. Probably in the area of R30.00 - R40.00
Packaging : Good. this is the only one with a screw lid, which means easier access and less wasted product than the squeeze tubes. Coppery and slightly metallic with a dark brown lid.
Scent : Great. If you like chocolate, you'll like this cocoa glow's scent. Staying power isn't as good as the other products compared so far though.
Moisturising : Very much so. It's rich and hydrating and again, does this without leaving the skin feeling greasy. I think it's also the product that is absorbed into the skin the quickest.
Cruelty free : No. Click here for more.

Overall, this is a great product, but for one massive snag, and I bet you know what it is already. In comparison to the other products, this is probably one of the very best. I hate to sing the praises of a product that I really like, but will never buy to use once this one is done. (Well, unless they grow consciences over at Vaseline and Unilever.)

Freeman beauty products are available at Dischem here in South Africa. This is another of those lifesaver brands. They do lotions, body washes and scrubs (which are great!!!) and I use only their face mask range. They also do good shampoos and conditioners, though their full product range isn't available here in the Southern side of the globe (in my neck of the woods anyway).

Product size : 400 ml
Price : Around R50.00
Packaging : Great. Another header :P. Stands on the lid, which is great for getting out as much as possible of the product. This one is white plastic, with a printed glossy plastic sleeve.
Scent : Good. I'm not so mad about the fruity scent on this one, which is supposed to be shea butter and lemongrass, but smells more like kiwi cocktail to me. (: The smell doesn't stay long either, which means that this one loses in the scent department.
Moisturising : Not so much. While it absorbs into the skin quickly and it leaves the skin feeling smooth for a while, the feeling soon disappears and you have to re-apply.
Cruelty free : Yes, but I can't find anything to suggest that this is a vegan product.

I bought this product some months ago to try it out and I have to admit, I was left disappointed. In comparison to the other Freeman products, especially their absolutely brilliant masks (I mean, I have yet to find a product that comes close to their masks), this one is very lacking. It's still a good lotion, better than some others out there, but it doesn't have the oomph all of the other products reviewed here today have. And I can't appreciate the kiwi-ish smell. :)

I hope you liked this smackdown. If you want to see more like this review, let me know. Also, let me know which products you would like to see reviewed and I'll see what I can do. I won't have a post like this one every month though, because I like to use the products I compare for at least a month to form a solid opinion on them. And hey, gathering them up takes time! :)

Also, just a quick reminder to read my novel and to vote! I've managed to add the poll to the page as well, so you can vote there if you couldn't find the poll on the sidebar before. Please support me in this, as it's going to help get my real novel (the one I just spent about two years working on) to get published. The more I write and have to my name, the better my novel will be received. Besides, this online thing is going to be great as well. I have big plans with it! Tee hee hee... :)